Acer Aspire 5 A515-43-R19L RAM Replacement

Written By: Troy Rana

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Acer Aspire 5 A515-43-R19L RAM Replacement

Difficulty

Very easy

Steps

Time Required

10 minutes

Introduction

If your Acer Aspire 5 Slim Laptop (A515-43-R19L) does not come with sufficient RAM for your workload, use this guide to replace or install new sticks for the device.

The Aspire 5 (depending on the variation you purchased) needs a helping hand to hit the quick and snappy response times one should expect from a relatively modern device. We can attribute this issue to RAM or your device's "short-term" storage. The default kit included in the Aspire 5's cheapest chassis is a single channel 4GB stick. Generally speaking, more is needed to match user expectations compared to consumer devices, like phones, you see on the market today. But luckily, at the time of writing, RAM had become one of the cheaper components for a PC. As such, you can build up some hardware experience while improving your user experience.

Following this guide will help alleviate the potential anxiety a first-time repairer may have when interacting with the sensitive internals of their device. In addition, replacing RAM in this context can be translated to most laptop form factors and roughly translates to replacing RAM in a desktop tower.

Before beginning, please ensure the device is powered off and disconnected from any external power source.

Tools

Step 1

Place your device with the top facing down.
Make sure the primary exhaust is facing away from you.

Step 2

Remove the nine screws from the bottom of the laptop using a Phillips #1 screwdriver.

Step 3

Use a prying tool to separate the case from the laptop.
As you reach the exhausts and screen hinges, be especially careful. Too much force may cause unforeseen damage.
Potential device damage: Avoid pushing too far into the device during this process, as you may apply unnecessary force to the sensitive internals.

Step 4

With any step working on the device's internals, keep direct contact with any components to a minimum. This is doubly true for your exposed skin.
While this step is not necessary, it is common practice to reduce the chances of things going wrong. (i.e "bricking" your device).
Use an opening tool to detach the battery connector from the motherboard.

Step 5

You'll find RAM slots north of the battery connection point and to the right of the copper pieces.
Lightly grip and push both sides of the RAM housing in opposite directions until the RAM pops up from the slot at an angle.
Pull the RAM free from the slot.

Step 6

Align your RAM's DIMMs so the shorter side slots into the shorter space and the larger side slots into the larger space.
Insert the RAM at an angle.
Press down on the stick until the bearings on both sides click into place.